4 teams that can save Josh Jacobs from his Raiders nightmare

Josh Jacobs is clearly not thrilled about the way things have gone with the Raiders this season, and these four teams can rescue him come free agency in March.

The new regime in Las Vegas showed what they thought of Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden’s work when they let go of or didn’t pick up contract options on recent Raiders’ draft picks. In that latter category was running back Josh Jacobs, who didn’t have his fifth-year option for 2023 picked up last offseason.

Further writing on the wall came in the preseason, when Jacobs surprisingly played in the Hall of Fame Game. He was clearly entering his final season with the Raiders, with questions about how much they’d use him. Or it could go the other way, with running him into the ground and saying goodbye after the season absolutely in play.

Entering Week 17, Jacobs is the NFL’s leading rusher this season with 1,539 yards. He has been a workhorse, with 306 carries (second-most in the league) and 11 touchdowns on the ground, while adding 47 catches for 369 yards.

After the Raiders’ Christmas Eve night loss to the Steelers, Jacobs aired some grievances via Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal and Vic Tafur of the Athletic. (NSFW language).

Yeah, man, it’s bullshit, for real,” “It’s bullshit. And it’s on us, you know? Everybody wanna talk about the defense before. They made their stops when they were supposed to. Shit, we’ve got to help them out. And, you know, I’m tired of saying we’ve got to fucking help them out, and it’s just frustrating.”

Jacobs’ airing of grievances came before this week’s decision to bench quarterback Derek Carr. So if Jacobs signing elsewhere come March could be higher than 100 percent, it would be.

Jacobs is among the top options in what looks to be a deep 2023 free agent class of running backs. These four teams could rescue him from his Raiders’ nightmare come March.

Josh Jacobs rumors: Detroit Lions

The Lions’ rushing attack has been solid this season (16th in the league, 120.7 yards per game), led by Jamaal Williams’ league-high 14 rushing touchdowns and inconsistent contribution from D’Andre Swift. But they have struggled to get much going on the ground down the stretch, even as the team won six of seven games to put itself in the playoff race.

Williams is a free agent after the season. Swift will be entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2023, barring a surprise contract extension. Frankly, Swift is more likely to be traded this offseason than to get a multi-year contract extension from the Lions.

It seems Lions head coach Dan Campbell would like to have a workhorse, every-down back, but with Williams not offering a lot as a pass catcher and Swift being consistently banged up a backfield committee has been the better plan.

Jacobs has shown he can be a early down workhorse, and he has more than 100 receptions over the last two seasons (with two games to go this year of course).

The primary question for Detroit in regard to signing Jacobs would be cost, based on where they are in their build and how wise it would be to invest heavily in a running back. But the soon-to-be former Raider is still only going to turn 25 in February, so he’s a potential offensive building block for a chunk of years to come.